by Lilly Wilder
A million questions ran through my mind and I was still reeling from having been moments from dying when something happened to the dragon. It twisted its head and stretched out its wings. The rush of air blew strands of hair away from my face. There was a cracking of bone as the dragon transformed before my eyes. Its wings receded into its back and the dragon shrunk. Its scales grew paler and morphed into flesh and then, standing there suddenly, was Thomas. I blinked and scrunched my eyes together, unable to comprehend what I had just seen.
“Can you please stop trying to die,” he said. My mouth was agog and I felt light-headed. I had just seen a dragon change into a man. No, it was impossible, I told myself, and yet he had plucked me out of the air as I had been falling to my death. He had saved me. There was a sharp pain in my mind, and I closed my eyes hard, rubbing my temples to try and make it go away. I thought back to the crash and what had happened as we had been caught in the storm. I had been looking out of the window and then I was losing my balance. I heard a sound and I remembered now that I had felt a wing coming around me, gathering me up, and I remember flying through the air, seeing the plane fall behind me. I remembered the dark savior settling me down on the beach and then flying away again before I rested. And now I realized that he must have been the dark shape I saw on the beach as well, the one I had seen flying through the air.
And yet, even though I thought of all this and it seemed entirely rational, I was still having a hard time admitting that I had just been saved by a dragon.
“What…what’s happening?” I asked. William looked at me, still recovering from his battle with the boar. Thomas stood there with his hands on his hips. He moved towards me and reached out a hand, intending to help me up, but I wasn’t ready to be touched by him again. I pushed myself back, my face lined with fear, and he seemed to understand. He held his palms up and spoke low and clear.
“I’m sorry you had to see that without any warning, but I didn’t really have any choice. It was either that or let you die, and we’ve already seen too much death here,” he said, and then went on to confirm that it was indeed him who had saved me from the plane crash.
I gulped and ran my hands through my hair. He tossed me a bottle of water and I was glad of the refreshment. “This isn’t possible,” I said.
“Seeing is believing. I know it seems like a lot to take in, but it’s true. William and I are dragons. We have the ability to transform, think of it like werewolves just…a little more exciting,” he said, sharing a look with his brother. I didn’t happen to think it was exciting at all.
“But…but how? I have…I have so many questions.”
“I know you do. I was hoping we wouldn’t have to reveal this side to you, at least not yet, but as I said, I didn’t really have a choice.”
In all the confusion one thing was abundantly clear. If Thomas saved me, he could have saved the others. When I told him this it was with venom in my voice, and he bowed his head.
“I know it might seem that way,” he explained, “but we’re not gods. I saved you, but by the time I went back it was too late. We managed to salvage a crate, but that was it.”
“And Vincent? You could have just changed into a dragon and killed that boar! All this time I was thinking that we didn’t have enough weapons when you are a weapon.”
“I truly am sorry for your friend Amber. I wish that things could have been different. To be honest, I don’t think either of us realized that the boar would have been able to survive the gunshots. William avenged him, and I saved you. You have to understand that we’re a very private people. We’ve had to keep this secret all our lives, and our ancestors all of theirs. We aren’t used to appearing in our true forms in front of normal people. It takes a lot for us to reveal ourselves.”
I nodded, understanding, although it was still taking me some time to process everything. I took another sip of water and slowly rose, using a nearby tree as leverage. I looked past Thomas at the island edge and made sure to keep my distance from it. It was easy for me to get lost in all my questions, to be humbled and awed by the supernatural, impossible sight I had seen, so I composed myself and told myself that impossible was part of the job. I was an archaeologist and my father had always told me that we had to be prepared for the unexpected because we never knew what we might find in an ancient ruin.
I always used to wonder what he meant by that because it seemed like an oxymoron. How could anyone prepare for the unexpected? But as I looked at the man who could turn into a dragon, I knew what my father meant; being prepared was an attitude rather than having the right equipment. It meant being able to look at things rationally and put aside prejudice and bias, to accept the evidence and the truth no matter how impossible it seemed, and to always keep an open-mind. I made sure to keep my breaths measured and tried to think about this logically.
“So you’ve had an agenda all this time,” I said. I knew something had been up from the instant I had met them. At the time I hadn’t questioned it because I wanted to go on this expedition more than anything, but it was convenient that these wealthy men just so happened to be interested in archaeology enough to want to fund the expedition and join me.
“Yes, we have, and we’re sorry for lying to you,” Thomas said. I wasn’t sure if I believed him.
“I don’t like it when people are dishonest with me.”
“Can you really blame us for not telling the truth? It’s not like you would have believed us.”
I had to concede that he was probably right. I hung my head and tried to figure out what to do next. I supposed that the first thing I needed to do was understand what their agenda was and try not to lose my mind at the fact I was standing in front of two magical men. Believe me, keeping myself from freaking out was one of the more difficult things I had to do, but it was necessary for me to function.
“You have to tell me what you’re really doing here, what’s really going on,” I said. Thomas glanced at his brother and William shrugged.
“The cat’s kinda out of the bag now, so to speak,” he said.
Thomas nodded and gestured for me to join him and sit down. I warily left my tree and sat down on the ground, assuming that this was going to be quite a long story. Thomas crossed his legs. William excused himself and said that he was going to find a place to wash off the blood. He was swallowed by the trees and I wondered if he had killed the boar as a man or a dragon, and if he was about to shift into a dragon now and fly to a clean pool. I turned to Thomas and looked at him expectantly.
“You have to understand that this is difficult for me to talk about as usually we never discuss these things with an outsider,” he began.
“It’s okay Thomas. We’re on a deserted island and from the looks of things, it doesn’t seem like anyone is going to rescue us anytime soon. You can be assured that your secret is safe with me.”
“The line of dragons is a long and powerful one that stretches back centuries, but the exact nature of our origin has been lost in the mists of time. Some believe that we were born by magic, others believe that we are simply a better version of humans, and others believe that we’re the last breed of a subspecies of humans that could change into animals, which would mean there’s truth in the werewolf stories. All I know is that we are a proud people and we have taken to secrecy because humanity spread over the world relentlessly and it was impossible to hide from it. Our dynasty is a long one and we set up companies a long time ago that accumulated great wealth so that we are assured of a good life. Most dragons in our lineage have been content to live their lives, pass on the secret knowledge, and then die. The cycle continues and the secrets remain, but over the last couple of generations there is obviously more information readily available and some of us have been more curious about our origins.”
“So you’re here to find out where you came from? But I don’t understand why you’d think you came from here. Is it just because it’s called Dragon Island? Because I’m pretty sure the
re are other places in the world that have the word ‘dragon’ in their names.”
“It’s not just because of that. Amber, you remember how your parents first heard wind of this place, yes?”
“Yes…well, they never gave me any details, but they told me that they had definite evidence. They wouldn’t have come out here on a hunch.”
“And where do you think they got that information from?”
“I always just assumed it was from some old book they researched. They did love pouring over old documents.”
“They got the information from my father. He had done a lot of research and he wanted to hire explorers to search the island and find the origin of our species. He swore them to secrecy, but he was the reason they came here.”
“But why didn’t he just look for it himself? Presumably he could fly, was it not easier just to come here if he was that determined to find it?”
“It was not that simple. Flying over such great distances means there is more chance of us revealing ourselves to the world. We are taught from a young age that the most important thing we can ever do is keep our secret, that it must be kept at any cost. Father was…something of a radical. He thought that some traditions should be cast aside in the name of truth and honesty with ourselves. He thought that we should look to the past so that we could truly know where we came from and learn about our ancestors. He liked to say that we had been walking through darkness, that we had lost some element of ourselves as we had been living in the human world for so long. It was his hope that your parents would find some clue and it would force the dragons to come out into the world. Sadly, they never returned.”
I swallowed a lump in my throat and reminded myself that I had to remain focused on the subject at hand, not get distracted by my emotion. It helped that I was fully intrigued by the topic.
“And he couldn’t hire others?”
“There was another obstacle in his way,” Thomas said, a dark cloud coming over his face. His voice took on a terse edge. “As I said, my father was something of a radical. Not everyone shared his views, and some actually believed he was a threat to our people. Twins are something of a common occurrence in our race, but not all of them get on as well as William and I. My uncle never shared my father’s views, and when he learned what father had done, he was furious and vowed that he would do anything to prevent anyone from discovering this place. That’s why nobody was ever able to come here, and why nobody would fund your expedition either. Our uncle has…many powerful friends, friends who would do anything for a price.”
“Your father is he…” I said, recognizing the tone of voice and the look in his eyes of a child that had lost a parent. Thomas looked at me and gulped.
“Uncle told us that it was an accident, but I think we always knew better even when we were younger. You’re not the only one to have lost parents Amber. I think it’s perhaps why we were drawn to you in the first place. Father kept journals and told us as much as he could; so we knew of your parents and of his efforts to explore this island, and we took it upon ourselves to finish what he started.”
I was astounded by this revelation because it meant that we had all been working towards the same quest from the beginning. Our histories had been linked, and so was our present.
“You’re doing exactly the same thing I am,” I said, amazed.
“Yes. We have spent our whole lives trying to find the right person to lead this expedition, and when we found out that you were actually planning one yourself, we used what money father left us to fund it, despite our uncle’s protestations. We had to remain quiet and wait until the last moment to appear to you because we were afraid, he’d kill us just as he killed our father, and that’s why we came here as well. We were afraid that either he would try and sabotage the expedition, or that he would simply kill us before we had a chance to see what you had found.”
“He sounds like a horrible man.”
Thomas gave a dry snort and a grim smile. “He thinks he’s doing what he needs to do to keep our people safe. He’s the most dangerous kind of man, because he thinks he’s right.”
“What do you hope to do with the information, if we find any?”
“Honestly, at this point I just want to see if there is anything here. Father was so sure, but I wonder if he was just as stubborn as my uncle, only to the opposite extreme. I want to know where we came from. We have a lost history, and I want to be able to share it with my descendents. We live in the age of information and I think it’s important that we learn where we came from so that we can better know where we’re going.”
“I can understand that. I came here to get closer to my parents. But there’s so much that I never realized…”
“If they were anything like you, I can understand why my father chose your parents to come here,” Thomas said. “I am truly sorry about everything. I hated lying to you Amber. I hope that we can have a fresh start.”
“I suppose that saving my life a couple of times makes up for that,” I said. Thomas reached out and slid his hand over mine. The touch of him was warm and exciting, and I didn’t pull my hand away. Yet when I drew near him, I couldn’t help but remember that he was a dragon. I knew I should have been frightened, freaked out, but after talking with him it seemed somewhat…normal. Perhaps it was just because I was on a deserted island, but I’d always assumed there were secrets in the world, and I couldn’t very well ignore what I had seen with my own eyes, and I couldn’t resist the attraction I felt for Thomas either. It had been simmering in my heart since we had first met and had only grown during our time on the island. Now, I felt closer to him than ever, for I knew that we were struggling with the same issues. I looked deep in his eyes and felt the world melt away. This man had saved my life twice now, and I was eternally grateful. I squeezed his hands and he shifted closer towards me. The air sizzled with the heat from his body and I met his lips as he touched mine, enjoying the warm burst of passion that flowed through my body. I cupped my hand against his cheek and moaned softly, before we heard noise behind us. William had returned.
12
I broke away from Thomas, a little embarrassed. William pursed his lip and stared at us for a couple of moments. He had cleaned off the blood, although he still looked drained.
“Shall we continue?” he asked.
Thomas leaped up and held a hand, helping me up.
“I am curious about something though, if you’re dragons then surely you can fly around this island and explore it in a way that I never could. Why do you need me here in the first place?” I asked.
“Because you’re the expert. You’ve been training for this your entire life, we haven’t,” William said. I wasn’t used to receiving praise from him. When I looked at him I blushed, confused as to whether I was actually attracted to him or if I was just transferring my feelings for Thomas. And then, in the back of my mind, there was Bobby as well. I felt bad that he didn’t mean more to me, but I was intrigued by the mystery of Dragon Island and these two men. My blood sang with excitement.
“You know how to put things into context, how to read the landscape in ways that we can’t. We have done a recon of the island, but we haven’t seen anything obvious. Now that you know the truth, do you have any other theories about where we should look?”
I considered the matter for a moment. “I suppose it depends on a couple of things. Do you know if you ancestors spent more time as dragons or as humans? If it’s the latter than we might well find the remains of a settlement in the heart of the jungle, but if they preferred to live as dragons then it’s more likely that the lair will be in a mountain. I don’t presume to speak for you, but I imagine dragons would prefer to live in places near the air so they can fly and swoop down to the jungle to hunt.”
“That makes sense,” Thomas said. We all looked up at the mountains that threatened to pierce the sky. They looked ominous and foreboding.
“It would explain why my parents stayed where they
did. I imagine if they had found an old ruin, they would have tried to take advantage of it and turned it into a new home, but if the dragons of old stayed in the mountains they’d be unable to get up there. It doesn’t look like they’re easy to climb,” I said. From what I could see the mountains were sheer rock.
“A place that only dragons can access,” William said. He looked at Thomas and nodded.
“Wait!” I said. I knew what they were thinking, and I wasn’t sure I was ready to go flying again. “Before we leave, I want to bury Vincent. I think it’s the right thing to do.”
“We don’t have time,” William said.
“Actually, I think time is the one thing we do have an abundance of,” I snapped back. “I haven’t been able to bury anyone on this trip, not even my parents. Duncan and Daniel were lost to the sea, and it just feels wrong to leave Vincent laid out there like that. He was a good man, and he deserves more than just to be left to rot in the middle of a jungle. I know I’d want to be treated with a bit of dignity if anything happened to me.”
The brothers looked at each other and nodded.
“I’ll go and fetch the crate,” William said. I was glad to hear him say that as it gave me and Thomas a chance to spend a little more time together and explore our attraction. But, to my dismay, Thomas instantly told William not to worry and that he would go and fetch the crate himself because he felt like stretching his wings. I tried to hide my disappointment as I didn’t want to appear rude to William, but when we walked away from Thomas I did feel as though I was missing out on something.
We entered the jungle and I heard the sound of thrashing wings behind me. I twisted my neck round, but only caught a glimpse of a tail as Thomas swooped around the island and returned to the beach. My gaze continually darted towards William and I wondered what he looked like when he was a dragon.